There’s a fervid experimental music scene bubbling away in the Iranian capital of Tehran right now, and if you haven’t heard it, then there’s no better place to start than with our Secret Spotify pick of the week.
Hardcore Sounds from Tehran was released in 2016 by Ata Ebtekar, who creates exploratory electronic music under the pseudonym of Sote. It’s just over 45 minutes long, split into two sides, and it’s a sonic assault in the best of ways. Side A is a jittery, paranoid dissection of dance music form, lurching from idea to idea. Side B, meanwhile, is an unchained beast, lashing out with ominous, lacerating techno.
It’s the kind of radical music that, not too long ago, would never have been heard in public in Iran — since the revolution of 1979, cultural output has been tightly restricted by the powers that be. But in the past few years, that grip has loosened, which has allowed a new scene of like-minded musicians to flourish, both in the studio and out in venues. Hardcore Sounds from Tehran is actually a live album of sorts, melded together from a number of sets performed by Sote in the two years prior.
That scene is best sampled at SET Fest, an experimental arts event based in Tehran but which has travelled to take place in Berlin and Barcelona. Sote was a driving force behind its inception in 2015, and it features some other key players, such as Siavash Amini and Umchunga. Dive into their stuff for a deeper idea of the incredible sounds coming out of the city.
Check out the stories behind the rest of our Secret Spotify picks here, and listen to all of our chosen songs so far in the playlist above.
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